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Notebook: Bigger role for Lady Dog rookies

Posted: Thursday, October 22, 2009

By ROGER CLARKSON

Georgia started preseason practice looking to change its recent trend toward average finishes. But the first workouts began under an unfortunate cloud as the Lady Bulldogs lost starting guard Christy Marshall to a season- ending knee injury.

That injury made an already young team even younger and applied more pressure to the seven newcomers to produce quickly.

"You go from having four returning starters who are juniors and seniors back to the possibility of having two freshmen in that same lineup," Georgia coach Andy Landers said. "So it gets a lot younger. OK, you've got three veterans and they know what they're doing. But you could have two kids who don't know where the light switches are. They not only don't know how to turn them on and off, but they don't know where they're at."

Marshall started 21 games and averaged 8.8 points last season. She was one of three senior starters expected back for 2009-10. Her loss leaves Georgia with three returning starters, guard Ashley Houts, forward Angel Robinson and forward Porsha Phillips. Houts and Robinson are seniors and Phillips is a junior.

"It takes its toll because it's very unfortunate and it's a season-ending injury," Houts said. "As for the team, I think it brings us closer a little bit. Sometimes we take things for granted and we need to work hard every day out there. We were pretty stunned. We were pretty shocked. But that's part of the game. It happens and we need to get back in the groove and keep working."

Landers said that it's too early to predict who might take over Marshall's role. But the replacements will almost certainly come from among new faces on the roster.

"I'm anxious to see what is going to happen," Landers said. "It's obvious that there's going to be a big experience piece that's going to be missing. What it's going to force us to do at times is have two freshman wings on the floor at the same time."

Landers wants more leadership from Houts this season

Houts - along with Robinson - is a preseason first-team all-Southeastern Conference pick. She played for the United States national team that won the gold medal at the World University Games last summer. Much of what Georgia plans to do this season starts and ends with the 5-foot-6 senior four-year starter at point guard.

But Landers would like to see Houts step to the forefront as a leader.

"The good thing is she's the same, but the bad thing is she's the same," Landers said. "There's not anybody who's going to walk through that door who's going to give you more effort, not next year and not 10 years from now. She's been that way since she got here.

"The other side is she's not taking enough people with her. She's not communicating like she knows that we want her to communicate. She needs to take a more active role in helping us move those freshmen and the rest of the team to where it's supposed to be."

Hassell likes coach's challenge to freshmen

Forward Jasmine Hassell was not far removed from her senior prom when Landers told the Lady Bulldogs' freshmen that he expects them to produce quickly and push the veterans. Hassell is one of seven newcomers who make up more than half of the roster.

"It's an honor, really, to be asked to come in and produce like that," Hassell said. "It's a challenge and I like challenges. It's a great honor to be challenged by coach Landers. It's tradition here. When you're asked to take a challenge for tradition, it's kind of cool."